Customer Reviews

Look Better Naked: The 6-week plan to your leanest, hottest body--ever!

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Where other books on "dieting/exercise" will instantaneously delve into the epicentre of their plan this one begins with a mental makeover of sorts. The author attempts to have the reader appreciate one's body more than he/she already does. She advises to look at a selection of nudes (of varying body types) and to perform a weekly exercise ritual in the buff (ie. sleeping and eating etc.) to appreciate the banality of the human body - its curves, shadows, how it simply exists, and all of its functions. Even BDD (body dysmorphic disorder) is addressed. A healthy mindset is promoted from the get go.

Next, there is an optional two-day cleanse then a diet plan for the next six weeks. It is built to total 1.400 calories/day and includes: breakfast, lunch, dinner, and two snacks. The meals are focused around 20 power foods: avocados, beef, bell peppers, berries, black beans, Brussels sprouts, cheese, chicken breast, dried fruit, eggs, flaxseed, hummus, milk, nuts/nut butters, olives/extra-virgin olive oil, salmon, tofu, tuna, whole grains, and yoghurt. The meals include various combinations of the list with the occasional added ingredient. There is also a list of recommended added spices and low-calories condiments like mango salsa. Splurging is allowed once in three weeks (twice over the program). A signature cocktail is also included for going out.

Following food is the section on fitness. The regime consists of two weekly metabolic work-outs and two strength training sessions. There is also an optional "do-anything" day from pilates to gardening. There is a ten minute warm-up before the pages of exercise. The strength training features 15 reps with 4 pound weights and lasts under 30 minutes. Weeks 4-6 the reps drop to 8 but the weights also increase to 8 pounds. The metabolic work-out is also under 30 minutes. It is high intensity interval training, and has one set for weeks 1-3 and another for 4-6. Weights (4 & 8 pounds), an adjustable bench, a barbell, 5 & 10 pound barbell plates, an exercise mat, a jump rope, fitness shoes, and a Swiss ball are necessary for the work-outs.

Finishing touches are the next topic. Body acne, shaving, waxing, and pedicures are covered. There is also a bonus section of sorts that covers weeks 7-9. It speaks of weight maintain with an allowed weekly slip up, has new work outs that follow suit with the previous ones. In that section is also one covering ab workouts that follow the interval training style. A brief inlet about controlling cravings exists immediately after. The last few chapters cover "target zones" for weeks 7-9. The body parts are for breasts, arms, legs/butt and cellulite. The last bit is a warrior work-out. The book says you should lose 1-2 pounds a week with their plan, so if you make it to week 9 you should lose from 9 to 18 pounds.

Personal quip: I being a vegetarian have to alter the dietary plan to suit my needs, so except for some tidbits most of the food is inedible to me. Also, I don't agree with their training methods. In order to cause fat enzymes to begin burning away fat they need stimulation of 30 minutes, thus the work-outs don't sound to be effective for more than fiber type II toning. I would stick to a similar calorie goal 1,400-1,550 (to preserve maximum current muscle while losing weight) but to modify the work-out to 30 minutes strength plus 30 cardio (stationary) 5-6 days a week. The strength should be done first to activate the metabolism resulting in more burn during cardio. Yoghurt is one of the best foods in the plan eating it over 15 weeks caused 22% more fat than the rest without any change in diet (they ate three a day), this is from the CLA. For the mental aspect and general beauty tips it is written better than many other fitness books, but I admire the self-esteem boost not the work-out/diet.

As a fitness professional, I was SO happy to find that this book addresses components to compliment a good exercise plan! It's a book I would recommend to all of my female clients! Attitude, exercise, nutrition, beauty play an intrinsic role in looking better and feeling more confident.
I specifically love the exercises chosen to be included in the book! They're great ones.

[...]

I'm a stay at home mom of two little ones, ages 5 and 3. I was looking for something to help me get in shape and also gain healthier eating habits. I was convinced enough by previous reviews of this book that it had what I was looking for and boy was I right! While much of the book is geared toward being comfortable in your own body not just physically but mentally I didn't feel I'd learned anything new, however I have pretty good self esteem and never minded my mommy tummy or thick thighs much. So if you're more insecure about your figure be it large or small it has some wonderful thoughts and tips to get you to a healthier self view.
As for the diet portion of the book...I didn't want a "diet" as in, you can't eat these things..... and this book is the complete opposite, it's very positive and encourages you to splurge here and there on tasty things, (this includes cheese! something I could never ever give up entirely) but the meal plans provided also fill you up so you're not left feeling hungry and tempted to eat something you don't need (aka, gold fish crackers, in my case). I have loved every meal I've yet to try, almost a weeks worth at this point. and look forward to trying the other new things. I'm not much of a cook by nature so it's been really fun to have tasty healthy meals and snacks that fill me up and give me energy and did I mention that they are super tasty? My husband has been eating the same foods with me and he's enjoying them as well.
Ok, now to the physical end of it. first off, they start you out with a two day cleanse, I lost two lbs., 1 a day. then you start working out after that. I haven't regularly exercised in quite some time so even the warm up they have you do was hard for me in the beginning but I'm already noticing that my body's adjusting and able to put out more. I have been more sore than I can ever recall being in my entire life but it feels good and I've lost 2 more lbs in 3 days!
the workouts consist of a warm up you do every time and then three different workouts that you rotate through over the coarse of three weeks. after the three weeks you have another three workouts to do for the following three weeks. there are two different strength training workouts and 1 metabolic workout.
I would say the only downside is they want you to join a gym. something I couldn't do, and so I have to make do with alternate styles of some of the exercises they're asking you to do because I don't have the necessary equipment. However there are only maybe 2 or 3 like this and with my husband's help I've figured out how to get the same effect through slightly different means. Most of it is easily done at home. Oh and something I love is you only exercise 4 times a week, and only ever two days in a row.
The book also does an excellent job explaining everything to you, why they're asking you to eat certain foods and what's behind all the exercises and routines and why. Very informative.
I'm sure I'll have more thoughts once I'm finished with the first six weeks but for now that's all.

Eep! SO SO SO many female-based cookbooks/diet books are so saddening/unemotional that most of the time I think they're just perpetuating the very feelings that make us overeat and get rid of the treadmill.

I for one, was sick of it! I found out about this book through my Women's Health magazine subscription, and thought that Ms. Editor-in-Chief was taking a new direction that was worth investigating!

So, I added to my bulk of cookbooks and vegan/vegetarian stuff (you're not alone, other veggie reviewers!), and took a look. My favorite part of the book is the addressing of female needs and desires to be covered. It's very refreshing of a book to point out that guys like nakedness, etc. and that women have this tendency to cover up in, say, the locker room. As a psych student who witnessed professor after professor debate this, the "waist to hip" evidence makes me raise an eyebrow and question the connection between our evolutionary desire to hide our assets and covering up. I hold the belief that this is widely a socialized phenomenon. A phenomenon that MIGHT be called into question once women read more books like this!

I work in a bookstore, so my only issue is that the book isn't as compact as books like Skinny Bitch or The Abs Diet for Women: The Six-Week Plan to Flatten Your Belly and Firm Up Your Body for Life. If a city girl has to commute, she might wanna take a fitness book with her!

A little aside to the women looking for this book. Most of us are super insecure, but I think if we all work together, and praise each other's individuality and beauty...then men will soon enough have books like this for THEM :P

(another aside for veggie readers: yep...recommending beef was something I definitely was NOT ok with! maybe in a future edition, they'll recommend Gardein!)

I am on my third week of this diet & exercise plan and I am seeing great results! I used both the book and the DVD to really help me figure out the right diet and proper exercises. I'm losing pounds and inches and feeling great about myself. I highly recommend this product!

I was very hesitant in the beginning. I had tried the abs diet; way to overwhelming and I couldn't stick to it. I needed a book that was simple enough to get me to make a lifestyle change. This one interested me because it's a small book and I liked the title! Now, I take this book everywhere with me, it is really my little side kick. It has given me the tools that I can use on a daily basis to eat right, and the workout plan is so simple, but challenging. I have following the workout plan for 5 weeks now and I love it. I do not get home till 6pm in the evening, so it is really hard for me to get the gym sometimes. The 24 minute workouts, that take place of 45 minutes of cardio, can mostly be done at home. And the featherweight workouts, you are done in 45 min to 1 hour! This is do-able! I try to come up with reasons why I can't do my workout and I come up with nothing, really there is no excuse!
The food plan is very simple and is a guideline, not something you have to follow to a T. I started this during the Holiday season, and I didn't stick to all the recommendations and I am still seeing results just from cutting back on my indulgences and working out 3 - 4 nights a week. If anything this book gave me the motivation I need to workout regularly, and an idea of how to eat healthy.
I loved this book so much and I got so many compliments I bought it for my girlfriends to try out too.

I've been a big fan of Women's Health magazine for a long time...largely due to the fact that it's one of the few mags that actually empowers women and makes them want to be their best self (rather than feel bad about themselves for not measuring up to an underweight models vital stats).

'How To Look Better Naked' has that same empowering message. After I read it I felt not only really informed about what to eat, how to exercise for the best results, but positive and ready to take on the 6 week challenge!

It's the perfect book to buy just in time for summer and the often dreaded Bikini 'walk of shame' to the water!

I've decided I want to feel totally confident this summer- and I'm already one step closer thanks to this book!

Whether you are new to working out or an experienced gym-goer, this book will inspire you with new ideas that are both fun and realistic. The six week plan laid out in this book is one that you can continue for a life time. The recipes do not sacrifice great taste, and the work out plans are effective and last under an hour. As someone who has been working out for years and motivating others to work out and feel better about their bodies, I highly recommend this book.

I can honestly say that this book has changed the way I look at food. Since I was 14 years old I struggled with eating disorders and always diet to the extreme without good results other than anemia and constantly fainting. I turned vegetarian for a good cause and all changed. Even though for almost 3 years I kept the same healthy weight, I wanted the way I feel about food and body image change, I really needed to get to the root of my issues, and this book did all that.
The title could be other, but it caught our attention right? And I love the graphics, the magazine feel like pages and the beautiful model, but what is even beautiful is the information inside. Let's go through it:

The diet:
I don't like to call it diet because you won't even feel like you are dieting. You have a 2 day cleanse that you will do before the 6 week plan and I didn't even struggled with that. You get three meals and 2 snacks and YES there are carbs in there! Good carbs, that your system needs!! I lost 5 pounds and less than two weeks with 1 cheating day every week and my skin cleared up. Yes, in two weeks. So you will not only lose weight but your skin and hair will improve as well. She explains everything in the book, how food is connected to every part of your body and how it can improve your overall health. I am a vegetarian and had NO problem switching the foods.

The workout:
Simple and easy, yet you will sweat and see results! I did both the book exercises and the dvd and they are both great! Can't wait to move on to other exercises once the 6 week period ends. Interval training really burns calories!You have to complete 4 30 minute workouts every week, 2 strength and 2 cardio... no biggie!

This was the first diet that I could follow until the end and saw results. Plus, I won't change the way I eat now, because I never felt better. Don't feel bad about cheating, we all need that sometimes, just eat clean the next day, maybe do 1 day cleanse from the diet paln. I really recommend this book to anyone who has struggled with weight because it's not likely that you will fall of the wagon with this yummy plan, plus you only have to work out for 30 minutes 4 days a week.

I did not purchase the book on amazon, but I did buy it at Barnes & Noble via internet with a gift card. When I bought it the only option was to get it in hardcover. I suggest you buy the book here on amazon due to it being cheaper. The book itself you don't really NEED it in hardcover.

For approximately two to three years I have been reading Women's Health magazine and while at the bookstore I decided to check out Look Better Naked. I am an active person and living a healthy lifestyle is what I do. So many of what is recommended in the book is pretty helpful, straight forward, and many great tips.

At the beginning the book mentions what it will cover and how you should benefit from it. Then it talks about body image and how you will and should view yourself. The following chapter gives you six ways to feel "sexier" for each week of the program. This includes taking a bath in the nude (obviously), eating dinner in the nude (with another person ex. husband/boyfriend/etc.), sleeping in the nude, getting a massage, getting fitted for sexy lingerie, and taking a nude photo. After that it then brings the diet into the picture. It talks about the top 20 foods you should be eating, which I do agree with all of it and personally eat in my daily life. Gives you flavor boosters for your food and tells you how to make them. The start of the six week diet plan starts with a two day cleanse which isn't as bad as it sounds. Then for about twenty pages or so it sums up what you should be eating. Finally it gets into the good stuff, the work out. These first workouts are simple and easy. After a couple of pages of work outs it gets into the topic of caring for your outer body. Such topics as waxing, ridding pimples and zits, shaving, make-up, nail polish and how to care for your hair. Following these outter body tips. For some odd reason she adds three stories about people who deal with being in the buff. I kind of find them pointless, but those are there as well. Then the rest of the book is works outs. There is also talk of how you should do yoga and many other forms of working out. That is the book in a nutshell.

The book itself has a lot of naked women, lots of side boob, booty, and a random nipple. So that's a heads up for you. I didn't really get the book to feel "sexier", I got the book for the work outs and for the recipes. I did not get a massage in the nude, nor did I eat naked with my fiance, didn't do a nude photo, and I didn't go an get fitted for lingerie. I really liked how it talked about the major and important things you should be eating, the top 20 foods you should be eating and correct and I myself would tell you the same thing. The flavor boosters are helpful and I use them for not just what is mentioned in the book. I didn't prepare the recipes how they should be prepared according to the book, but I put my own healthy twist. Yet I will say the menu is pretty tasty and very satisfying. I didn't really like how she randomly had three different women interviewed about how they work in the nude, but whatever. The tips on how to care for your outer body were pretty helpful. I like doing my own nails to save money and the little step by step guide helped me out to better them. Most important the workouts. The work outs are OKAY, not the best. When I first looked at the book the work outs seemed to be flawless, but now I find them to be boring or not as effective. BUT if you are just starting out or not a full on fitness junkie then go for them. I am not saying they are terrible, just saying I now do much more aggressive work outs. Also would like to add there isn't very many work outs as I thought was in this book.

Overall I am somewhat pleased with my book. I still use the recipes that are in the book to this day along with the sauces. I do occasionally do the work outs in the book as well. The book is cute and is pretty well written. If you wish to start getting into fitness this book is a good start. I suggest that you get the paperback, no need for the hardcover. Plus also you will only get so much use from it after a while so paying less would be a good thing. I am satisfied with it and I suggest it.